No petrol tax cuts in 11 Opposition-ruled states, biggest VAT reduction in poll-bound Punjab
Twenty-five out of India's thirty-six states and union territories have slashed taxes on petrol and diesel in the recent past. The remaining eleven are all Opposition-ruled. However, the biggest tax cut has been implemented in Congress-ruled Punjab.
A day before Diwali, the central government slashed the central levy on petrol and diesel by Rs 5 and Rs 10 respectively. Twenty-five states and union territories followed suit soon after and have cut the value-added tax on fuel. However, in the eleven remaining states and union territories of India, there have been no tax cuts. These are all non-BJP ruled parts of the country.
That said, the biggest cut in petrol tax has been implemented in Congress-ruled Punjab, a state which is all set to go to the polls early next year.
WHICH STATES HAVEN’T SLASHED PETROL TAX?
The eleven states and union territories which haven’t cut the tax on fuel are Maharashtra, Delhi, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Lakshadweep and Rajasthan.
These states and union territories are ruled by Opposition (non-NDA) parties including the Congress, All India Trinamool Congress, Nationalist Congress Party, Aam Aadmi Party, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Telangana Rashra Samithi and so on. In Lakshadweep, the government procures petrol and diesel for which the value-added tax is paid in Kerala.
Hence, petrol prices in all four big metros Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai remains above the Rs 100 mark.
In Chennai, petrol per litre is Rs 101.40, in Delhi it is Rs 103.97, in Kolkata it is Rs 103.67 and in Mumbai it is Rs 109.98.
Similarly, the price of diesel in the four cities is: Rs 91.42 per litre in Chennai, Rs 86.67 per litre in Delhi, Rs 89.79 per litre in Kolkata and Rs 94.14 per litre in Mumbai.
WHERE IS FUEL CHEAPEST?
At Rs 82.96 per litre, petrol is now cheapest in Andaman and Nicobar. In Arunachal Pradesh’s Itanagar, the rate is Rs 92.02.
However, the biggest tax cut has been implemented in Punjab, where the price has been reduced by Rs 16.02. Coming a close second and third, the price has been slashed by Rs 13.43 in Ladakh and Rs 13.35 in Karnataka.
In sharp contrast, the price of petrol is highest in Rajasthan’s Jaipur at Rs 117.45 per litre.
In the case of diesel, the price has fallen the most in Ladakh with a cut of Rs 19.61 per litre. In Karnataka, the price has been reduced by Rs 19.49 and in Puducherry by Rs 19.08.
However, diesel is cheapest right now in Andaman and Nicobar at Rs 77.13 per litre. In Mizoram’s Aizawl, he price is now Rs 79.55 per litre. In comparison, diesel costs a whopping Rs 108.39 in Jaipur, where no tax cut has been announced. In Andhra Pradesh, it is Rs 107.48 per litre.
IMPACT OF UPCOMING POLLS?
The tax cuts that have been announced (or not) across the country seem to have a political connect.
The BJP-ruled Centre announced its petrol and diesel tax cuts on November 3 as a ‘Diwali cheer’ move. This came days after the BJP’s not-so-spectacular performance in the recently concluded bypolls across different states.
The Centre’s tax cut came at a time when the BJP was being targeted by the Centre for inflation and high fuel prices. By cutting its levy, the Centre seemed to have challenged the Opposition to do the same.
In addition, five crucial state Assembly elections are just around the corner.
Uttar Pradesh, where the election will be held early next year, matched the Centre’s tax cut and announced a Rs 12 overall reduction in the centre-state levies on fuel. Goa, Manipur and Uttarakhand, which will go to the polls at the same time, also quickly announced their tax cuts after the Centre.
Ahead of the polls, the BJP and its allies appeared to have choreographed an attempt to show themselves as pro-people and expose those who did not slash taxes as insensitive to the suffering of the public. The Opposition, on the other hand, cried foul and said that the Centre’s move was only political.
The biggest tax cut, however, has come in Congress-ruled Punjab, which is gearing up for its important election early next year. On the other hand, states like Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have ignored the public pressure for reduction in fuel prices. This could be because there is no Assembly election around the corner in these states.
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